Gray County KS

The Arkansas River has carved a huge valley across the county. Inside this valley, the landscape is rugged, but by going north or south you climb out onto flat plains. The river bed is sandy and lined with cottonwoods, but it is often dry. It's hard now to imagine building an irrigation canal from it, but the river was much larger a century ago.

History

Organized July 20, 1887. County seat, Cimarron. Named in honor of Alfred Gray, late Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture.

Map and text from History of Kansas, Noble Prentis, (Winfield: E.P. Greer. 1899)

The Special Collections of the Ablah Library at WSU contain historical images of Copeland and Cimarron.

The Kansas State Historical Society also has more historical data for Gray County online including a rich bibliography and lists of cemeteries, post offices, and newspapers.

Cities, Towns, & Villages of Gray County

                 2000
  Year  Elev  Population Name              ZIP
  ====  ====  ========== ================ =====
        2712             Charleston
        2627       1,934 Cimarron         67835
  1912  2821         339 Copeland         67837
  1887  2719         203 Ensign           67841
        2776             Haggard
  1887  2680         328 Ingalls          67853
  1887  2785         966 Montezuma        67867
        2600             Wettick

Census Bureau Profile & Map

Special Places in Gray County

There's a wind farm (built and operated by Florida Power and Light) just NE of Montezuma on highway 56. It's awesome, with 170 wind towers, each 207 feet high with 3 blades, 77 feet each. Go to the Stauth Museum in Montezuma to pick up a card telling a lot more about this fascinating technology.

At many places along US-50 you can see traces of the Eureka Irrigation Canal, built in the 1880's and long abandoned.
Ensign is notable mostly for the giant elevators, but there is a park and playground at the Ford-Ensign Road and Aubrey St.
Charleston has a gas station in addition to the elevator beside the tracks.
Haggard is down to a grain elevator beside the SP tracks and two houses. There is also a TV transmitter a couple of miles West.
US-50 follows the original Santa Fe Trail through Cimarron. Cimarron Crossing Park has two markers describing the Trail through this area.

Libraries

Cimarron City Library (620) 855-3808
120 N. Main, Cimarron, KS 67835
Copeland Public Library (620) 668-5559
P.O. Box 118, Copeland, KS 67837-0118
Ingalls Library (620) 335-5118
200 S. Main, Ingalls, KS 67853
Montezuma Township Library (620) 846-7032
309 N. Aztec / P. O. Box 184, Montezuma, KS 67867

Museums

Santa Fe Trail Museum (620) 335-5220
204 S. Main, Ingalls, KS
Stauth Memorial Museum (620) 846-2527 Opened February 24, 1996
111 N. Aztec, Montezuma, KS 67867
Hours: 9-12 & 1-4 Tue-Fri and 1:30-4:30 Sat & Sun

Gray County School Systems

USD 102 Cimarron-Ensign (620) 855-7743
USD 371 Montezuma (620) 846-2293
USD 476 Copeland (620) 668-5565
USD 477 Ingalls (620) 335-5136

Clinics

Montezuma Clinic (620) 846-2251
304 N. Aztec / Montezuma, KS 67857
Cimarron Clinic (620) 866-7717
111 S. Main / Cimarron, KS 67835

Newspapers

Cimarron Jacksonian (620) 855-3902
101 N. Main, Cimarron, KS 67835
Montezuma Press (620) 846-2312
208 N. Aztec / P. O. Box 188, Montezuma, KS 67867

More Data About Gray County

Economic Development

Kansas County Profile Reports
Statistical data from The Institute for Policy and Social Research, the University of Kansas

Health Data

KDHE's Gray County Health Profile

Genealogy

Gray County KSGenWeb

Gray County Offices

Gray County Clerk (620) 855-3618
300 S. Main / Cimarron, KS 67835
Extension Service (620) 855-3821
17002 W HWY 50, Box 248 / Cimarron,KS 67835

References

WPA. The WPA Guide to 1930s Kansas (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, reprint 1984) See tour 4a, page 398

For more about Gray County contact:

Cimarron Chamber of Commerce (620) 855-2507
102 E. Avenue A / Cimarron, KS 67835